Numerous forms of clip fixtures are known in the art for attaching a wide variety of separate members, such as wire hangers for suspended ceilings, pipes and other conduits, cables, and the like. Generally, such fixtures are fastened to supporting surfaces by nails that extend through apertures provided, the nail desirably being preassembled with the fixture and held in position, for driving, either by an integral element (e.g., frictionally engaged in an aperture) or by a separate element (e.g., a tubular eyelet engaged on the nail).
Typical of prior art in the broad field of the invention are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,903,920, 4,915,561, 5,178,503, and 5,624,220.
One conventional form of clip fixture comprises a U-shaped member having a nail frictionally engaged and retained in an aperture through one of its arms and aligned with an aperture through the other arm, for being driven (by either manual or automatic means) into mounting structure. In driving the nail to install such a fixture the impact of the hammer tends not only to close the space between the arms but also to decrease substantially the space between opposing elements of the arcuate back portion. The resultant constriction tends to hamper the insertion of a wire hanger or the like; moreover, excessive collapse of the back portion will undesirably constrain a tied wire loop against free universal (or at least multidirectional) movement about the fixture.
Accordingly, broad objects of the present invention are to provide a novel, nail-mountable fixture which is highly effective for its intended purposes and convenient and facile to install, and a novel and readily produced assembly comprising such a fixture.
More specific objects of the invention are to provide such a fixture and assembly whereby and wherein a supporting hanger or the like is substantially freely movable, and a fastening nail is held firmly in position for ready driving.
Additional specific objects of the invention are to provide a fixture and fixture assembly having the foregoing features and advantages, which fixture and assembly are of relatively simple construction and inexpensive manufacture, and nevertheless exhibit high levels of strength and permanence.
It has now been found that certain of the foregoing and related objects of the invention are attained by the provision of a generally U-shaped fixture, fabricated from a non-resiliently deformable metal and having a preferential-collapse feature. The fixture comprises a relatively wide back portion of open, arcuate cross-sectional configuration, and a pair of arm portions extending forwardly from the back portion and having aligned fastener-receiving apertures formed therethrough; the arm portions will generally be parallel to one another, as viewed in two orthogonal planes. At least one of the arm portions has a zone of reduced cross section adjacent the back portion, and is preferably joined thereto by a transition portion, desirably comprised of convergent shoulder elements. Force applied to drive the mounting nail will cause the one arm portion to deform preferentially to the back portion, thereby permitting the latter to maintain substantially its open, arcuate cross-sectional configuration against the deforming force.
In certain embodiments the zone of reduced cross section will extend along at least most of the length of the one arm portion. The one arm portion will desirably be of the same thickness as the back portion, but of lesser width; i.e., the back portion will advantageously be about 1.5 times the width of the one arm portion, or wider. The fixture will usually be made of steel, and integrally formed as a single piece.
Other objects of the invention are attained by the provision of an assembly comprising the fixture described, and a nail or other similar fastener having a shank with a leading end portion frictionally retained in the aperture of the one arm portion. The assembly may additionally include a wire hanger member having an open loop portion through which the fixture extends. The relative dimensions and configuration of the loop portion may be such that substantially free multidirectional swiveling movement of the hanger member cannot occur about the back portion of the installed fixture, but can occur about the reduced cross section zone of the one arm portion.